Super Easy Homemade Beef Stock

The lead photo of this post is fairly misleading since I'm not actually posting a recipe for French Onion Soup (but I will tell you, I used the Cooks Illustrated recipe with all beef stock, no chicken stock).

I got a number of my ingredients for the soup at the Halifax Seaport Market - beef bones from Getaway Farm's Butcher Shop, onions and carrots from Noggins, baguette from The Seaport Bread Shop and cheese from Foxhill - but this post is going to be all about the glorious gelatinous beef stock I made as the base.

Super Easy Homemade Beef Stock (adapted from Emeril Lagasse) Yields 6 Cups of stock

5 lbs beef bones (if you ask really nice, Ben will give you a wicked assortment including marrow bones which are essential for great stock)

PC Black Label Taste #5 Umami Paste (link here)

2 medium onions, chopped

2 carrots, chopped

3 celery ribs, chopped

2 Cups red wine

small handful of black peppercorns

3 bay leaves

2 cloves garlic, peeled

4 L water

- pre-heat oven to 450 - place bones in a turkey roaster and cook 50 minutes - remove from oven, brush liberally with Umami Paste and return to oven until deep brown (almost starting to blacken), another 10-15 minutes

- remove bones from roasting pan and set aside - pour off excess fat into heatproof container - add 1/4 cup cold water to roasting pan and, with a wooden spoon, scrape up as many crusty bits as you can, leaving them in the pan - add onions, carrots and celery to pan and place back in oven until veg starts to brown, about 15-20 minutes

- remove pan from oven and immediately add 2 Cups red wine - again using wooden spoon, scrape up as much of the stuck on crusty bits as you can from the bottom of the pan

- in a large stock pot, combine roasted bones, veg-red wine mixture, peppercorns, bay leaves, garlic cloves and water - bring to a boil - reduce heat and gently simmer 8 hours

- after 8 hours, scoop out all large solids, then strain stock 4 times through a fine mesh strainer - leave stock to cool at room temp then place in fridge - fat will separate from stock and once chilled, will harden into a layer that you can easily scrape off - discard top layer of fat - benaeth should be beautiful beef jelly (don't worry, the stock will turn to liquid again when you heat it)

Chilled stock with layer of fat scraped off of top. 

 

Getaway's beef bones, pre-roasting.

 

Getaway's beef bones, post-roasting.

I know that lately it's been sunny and warm during the daytime as we head into spring, but the nights are still chilly enough to enjoy a savoury, hearty bowl of soup.

Oven-Roasted Tomato and Garlic Soup

Ever get one of those unexplained-out-of-nowhere-have-to-have-it-NOW cravings? That was me yesterday morning.

Tomato soup. BAM. Out of nowhere. I wanted some STAT!!

So today, I made some.

I checked out a bunch of recipes online but didn't find one I loved so, although inspired by others, this recipe is my own.

Oven-Roasted Tomato and Garlic Soup

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Cut 14 plum tomatoes in half - separate the cloves of one full bulb of garlic - leave the skin on the cloves - arrange in a pan with the cut side of the tomatoes facing up.

Drizzle tomatoes and garlic with olive oil then sprinkle with kosher salt and fresh cracked pepper.

Roast in oven for one hour.

Rough chop one medium-sized onion - sautee in olive oil until translucent - add 3 Cups of chicken stock - remove garlic cloves from skins - add cloves and tomatoes to stock - bring to a light boil - simmer 20 minutes.

Add 1 tsp sugar, 1/2 tsp dried oregano, 1 tsp salt, 1/4 tsp pepper, 1 Tbsp balsamic vinegar - puree with an immersion or regular blender. 

Sweet Potato Soup with Acadian Maple Syrup

One of the beauties of Twitter is the ability to hold conversation with people you would not normally meet. Last week, Tim Pratt of Real, Creative Eats tweeted about his weekend trip to the Earltown Maple Syrup Festival. I responded with a big 'I LOVE MAPLE!!!' tweet to which I then got a response from@AuthenticCoast with a link to the DesBarres Manor Inn recipe for Sweet Potato Soup with Nova Scotia Maple Syrup.

DesBarres Manor Inn is one of Nova Scotia's stunningly beautiful historic properties that has been faithfully restored to the full splendour of it's 1837 heritage. Located in the town of Guysborough, along the scenic Marine Drive of our Eastern Shore, DesBarres Manor has become a go to for lovers of local food and wine. 

'From our spectacular open kitchen, our culinary team uses fresh ingredients from the Manor’s organic garden along with seasonal gourmet treasures from local farmers and fishers to create contemporary Canadian cuisine with an East Coast flair. Seasonally inspired menus are complemented by the Proprietor’s extensive wine collection, offering you a personal selection of fine wines from around the world. Combined with our attentive service, the DesBarres Manor dining room creates a culinary experience as warm as our people.'

I followed DesBarres' recipe to a T and the end result was pretty good but I was left wanting a little more of a flavour kick. Maybe it's because I've been working for the Bertossis too long but my tastebuds have developed a serious need for intense flavour. 

DesBarres Manor Inn Sweet Potato Soup with Nova Scotia Maple Syrup

1 Tbsp Olive Oil, 1 tsp chopped garlic, 1/2 C chopped celery, 1/2 C chopped onion

1 Litre Chicken Stock, 2 Lbs peeled and diced Sweet Potatoes

4 Tbsp Maple Syrup, 1/4 tsp Nutmeg, 1 C Whipping Cream, 4 Tbsp Brandy

Sour Cream and Garlic Chives to garnish

Kelly's Modified Sweet Potato Soup with Acadian Maple Syrup

1 Tbsp Olive Oil, 1 clove chopped garlic, 1 stalk chopped celery, 1/2 med onion, chopped

1.5 Litre Chicken Stock, 2 Lbs peeled and diced Sweet Potatoes

8 Tbsp Acadian Maple Syrup, 1/2 tsp Nutmeg, 1/2 tsp Cardamom, 1.5 C Milk, 4 Tbsp Brandy, pinch of dried chili flakes

**Sautee garlic, celery and onion in olive oil 2 minutes

**Add chicken stock and sweet potato - bring to the boil - reduce heat - simmer one hour or until potatoes are soft

**Puree - add all other ingredients - simmer 15 minutes

**Garnish with sour cream and garlic chives

I simmered my sweet potatoes for one hour as the recipe calls for. I should have taken them from the heat when I checked them at 1/2 an hour because that's when they were done. By the end of one hour, my sweet potatoes had reduced too much and were so thick that I had to add more liquid, hence the increased measurements of stock and milk in my version. Also, my whipping cream was expired so I had to substitute milk for cream.

The only real difference in my version is the seasoning. I doubled the Maple Syrup because I found the original amount got lost among the sweetness of the potatoes. I increased the amount of nutmeg and then added cardamom to bring forth another flavour dimension. The pinch of chili flakes, once pureed, rounded out the bottom end of the sweetness with a little fire. I ate my first bowl with a dollop of sour cream and some chopped baby chives (I couldn't find garlic chives). The chives added a nice hint of oniony crunch but I think the soup could stand alone without the sour cream. 

All in all, this was a really nice recipe from one of Nova Scotia's best!!